Why Trump’s Victory Seems Much Larger

Julia Azari: “As I think about what makes the Trump era feel different and more threatening to American democracy than past moments, I keep coming back to the way that powerful forces are politically aligned behind Trump and Trumpism. It’s think tanks, business interests (including, it must be said, corporate media), and the courts.”

“What makes this moment uniquely dangerous isn’t the norm violations or the racism – nothing there is good, but neither is it new. What distinguishes this point in time from the Civil War or the tumult of the 1960s and 1970s (a time of serious political violence!) is that different power centers aren’t competing or frustrating each other – they’re aligned.”

“This didn’t just happen; it’s the product of a multi-decade effort to consolidate power – across branches and levels of government, as well as public and private sectors – in a system designed to decentralize it.”